Category: Real Estate News

The Empty Homes Tax will be applied annually, with the first tax year beginning on January 1, 2017. Homes that are deemed empty will be subject to a tax of 1% of the property’s BC Assessment value. Most homes will not be subject to the tax, as it does not apply to principal residences or homes […]

Vancouver, BC – February 22, 2017 – Budget 2017— BCREA News Release On the heels of multiple government announcements in 2016 and early 2017, the British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) welcomes the latest: an increase in the Property Transfer Tax exemption threshold for first-time buyers, announced in Budget 2017. The increase, to $500,000 from […]

You likely received your BC Assessment notice in the mail last month and saw a substantial increase in your home value.  Metro Vancouver property assessments saw an uptick of 15-50 percent in 2017.   Larger property assessments increase for single-family homes Increases of 30-50% were typical for single-family homes in Vancouver, North and West Vancouver, […]

Effective January 16, 2017 – the new BC Home Owner Mortgage and Equity Partnership program contributes to the amount first-time homebuyers have already saved for their down payment, providing up to $37,500, or up to 5% of the purchase price, with a 25-year loan that is interest-free and payment-free for the first five years. The […]

On Jan 10, 2017, BC’s Finance Minister announced that the province’s home owner grant program will now include properties with an assessed value of up to $1.6 million – which is up from the previous threshold of $1.2 million. This $400,000 increase from last year’s limit will ensure nine out of ten homes across the […]

You may or may not have heard about recent tax changes regarding the principal residence exemption available on the sale of a taxpayer’s principal residence (residents of Canada only.) The recent changes are significant and I would consider them to be a TAX TRAP because the new rules now require positive action by the taxpayer […]

BUYERS MARKETS conditions for DETACHED properties in the following areas were identified last month: Westside, Eastside, West Vancouver, Richmond, Tsawwassen, Ladner, Burnaby and Port Moody.   ATTACHED properties (condos/townhomes) in Greater and Metro Vancouver remain in BALANCED to SELLERS MARKET conditions.   Request your complimentary copy of the latest SnapStats report by emailing:  info@yourhometeam.com  

The federal government announced regulation changes for new government-backed insured mortgages today. Effective October 17, 2016, insured homebuyers will have to qualify at the posted five-year qualifying rate. Previously, only variable rate mortgages and mortgages with terms less than five years were subject to a higher qualifying rate. The qualifying rate is updated weekly and […]

Highlights: • Mortgage rates may feel upward pressure in coming months • Canadian economy set for a second half rebound • Bank of Canada: lower for longer, but not forever Mortgage Rate Outlook The Canadian five-year qualifying mortgage rate briefly moved higher in the third quarter, rising by ten basis points to 4.74 per cent […]

March sales set an all-time record Metro Vancouver home sales eclipsed 5,000 in March for the first time on record. Residential property sales in the region totalled 5,173 in March 2016, an increase of 27.4 per cent from the 4,060 sales recorded in March 2015 and an increase of 24 per cent compared to February […]